Welcome to the first chapter of this year's 2026 St Leger Trendspotting guide in which we'll look at the trainers to focus on during the four days at Doncaster.
But, before looking at the leading trainers at this meeting, let's check out which trainers have delivered at the big summer festivals so far in 2026 (Royal Ascot, Glorious Goodwood etc).
Watch every race of the Betfred St Leger Festival live on Sky Sports Racing (Sky 415 | Virgin 519) from Thursday 10th to Sunday 13th September.
2026 Summer Festivals
Trainer | W-R | £1 | Group race | Handicap | A/E |
Andrew Balding | 21-134 | -6 | 6-40 (+2) | 11-75 (-11) | 1.05 |
Aidan O’Brien | 20-87 | -12 | 15-72 (-8) | 0-0 (0) | 0.96 |
William Haggas | 13-70 | 0 | 5-26 (+13) | 6-39 (-17) | 1.14 |
Joseph O’Brien | 13-62 | +73 | 4-20 (+2) | 6-30 (+28) | 1.56 |
George Boughey | 8-47 | -11 | 5-10 (+10) | 3-33 (-17) | 1.17 |
Karl Burke | 8-84 | -21 | 3-36 (-14) | 2-33 (-11) | 0.91 |
Charlie Johnston | 7-62 | +28 | 0-14 (-14) | 5-37 (+30) | 1.74 |
Some eye-catching info features above, with both William Haggas and George Boughey doing well in the big Group races, while Joseph O'Brien and Charlie Johnston showed their expertise in preparing the right type of well-treated runners to land a valuable handicap.
As for who came out best at the St Leger meeting, then some of the above names also feature on Town Moor.
St Leger Leaderboard - Last Five Years
Trainer | W-R | Win rate | £1 | Places | Place rate | A/E |
John & Thady Gosden | 11-44 | 25% | +20 | 13 | 55% | 1.16 |
Charlie Appleby | 10-26 | 38% | +24 | 4 | 54% | 1.29 |
William Haggas | 7-40 | 23% | +23 | 8 | 37% | 1.14 |
Roger Varian | 6-38 | 16% | -11 | 13 | 50% | 0.86 |
Karl Burke | 6-46 | 13% | -19 | 9 | 33% | 0.92 |
Andrew Balding | 6-72 | 8% | -29 | 18 | 33% | 0.62 |
Aidan O’Brien | 5-35 | 14% | -13 | 10 | 43% | 0.75 |
Jim Goldie | 4-16 | 25% | +25 | 2 | 37% | 2.30 |
Richard Hannon | 4-51 | 8% | -15 | 6 | 20% | 0.73 |
Michael Appleby | 4-21 | 19% | +10 | 5 | 43% | 1.35 |
George Boughey | 4-26 | 15% | -12 | 4 | 31% | 1.10 |
Marco Botti | 3-17 | 18% | +6 | 4 | 41% | 2.05 |
Ed & Simon Crisford | 3-12 | 25% | +11 | 3 | 25% | 2.08 |
Owen Burrows | 3-10 | 30% | +9 | 2 | 50% | 1.83 |
Clive Cox | 3-16 | 19% | +9 | 3 | 37% | 1.33 |
Both Charlie Appleby and John & Thady Gosden boast excellent long-term records at this meeting, along with a tidy level stakes profit. Although neither enjoyed spectacular summers, it's possible they could be timing things to perfection at this fixture.
It can also pay to drill down into the specific races at Doncaster as they reveal the patterns of some trainers in targeting certain events, such as Karl Burke, who likes to go for the Carrie Red Fillies' Nursery and May Hill Stakes.
Race Records - Last Ten Years
Day One - Thursday | Top Trainers |
Carrie Red Nursery | Karl Burke: 3 wins 1 placed 9 runs |
Weatherbys 2-Y-O Stakes | Roger Varian: 2 wins 1 placed 5 runs |
1m2f Handicap (only three years) | Marco Botti: 1 win 1 placed 4 runs |
Park Hill Stakes | John & Thady Gosden: 3 wins 4 placed 12 runs |
May Hill Stakes | Karl Burke: 3 wins 1 placed 6 runs |
1m Nursery | John & Thady Gosden: 2 wins 0 placed 2 runs |
7f Nursery | Richard & Peter Fahey: 2 wins 2 placed 7 runs |
1m4f Handicap (only three years) | Michael Appleby: 1 win 1 placed 1 run |
Day Two - Friday | |
Flying Scotsman Stakes | Roger Teal: 2 wins 2 placed 2 runs |
Leger Legends | Richard & Peter Fahey: 3 wins 3 placed 12 runs |
Flying Childers Stakes | Clive Cox: 2 wins 0 placed 3 runs |
Doncaster Cup | John & Thady Gosden: 4 wins 1 placed 6 runs |
Fillies’ Handicap | William Haggas: 2 wins 1 placed 3 runs |
Fillies’ Maiden 7f (only three years) | Roger Varian: 1 win 2 placed 3 runs |
Nursery 6f (only three years) | - |
Handicap 1m2f Class 4 3yo+ | - |
Day Three - Saturday | |
Maiden 1m | John & Thady Gosden: 3 wins 2 placed 9 runs |
Champagne Stakes | Richard Hannon: 2 wins 0 placed 5 runs |
Portland Handicap | Jim Goldie: 3 wins 0 placed 5 runs |
Park Stakes | Edward Lynam: 2 wins 1 placed 5 runs |
St Leger Stakes | Aidan O’Brien: 5 wins 4 placed 33 runs |
Class 2 Handicap 1m | Ed & Simon Crisford: 2 wins 1 placed 3 runs |
Handicap 1m2f | William Haggas: 2 wins 0 placed 4 runs |
Day Four - Sunday | |
5f Handicap (only two years) | - |
6.5f Handicap (only three years) | - |
7f Handicap Class 2 3yo | Richard & Peter Fahey: 2 wins 2 placed 6 runs Roger Varian: 2 wins 0 placed 6 runs Charlie Appleby: 2 wins 1 placed 4 runs |
Sceptre Stakes | - |
Mallard Handicap | Alan King: 1 win 2 placed 3 runs |
5f Handicap (only two years) | - |
Apprentice Handicap 6f Class 4 3yo+ (only four years) | - |
The above highlights plenty of angles to look for, including in the Park Stakes where Andrew Balding holds some interesting entries.
Group/Listed races
When it comes to the Group races, of which there are eight across the four days, then Charlie Appleby has a solid record.
Doncaster St Leger meeting - Group/Listed races (last five years)
Trainer | W-R | Win % | £1 | Places | Place % | A/E |
Charlie Appleby | 4-8 | 50% | +9 | 2 | 75% | 1.66 |
Juvenile races
Several names came to the fore with the younger two-year-olds, including Roger Varian, who recorded a memorable treble 12 months with winners at 11/2, 7/2 & 3/1.
Doncaster St Leger meeting - Two-year-olds (last five years)
Trainer | W-R | Win % | £1 | Places | Place % | A/E |
Roger Varian | 4-15 | 27% | +6 | 6 | 67% | 1.53 |
George Boughey | 3-8 | 37% | +1 | 1 | 50% | 2.31 |
Clive Cox | 3-11 | 27% | +14 | 2 | 45% | 1.73 |
Also look out for Michael Bell, who only sent 3 juveniles to this meeting in the last five years, but they produced 2 wins with the other placed at 11/1.
Handicaps
In the competitive handicaps, a couple of different names to some of those already mentioned come to the surface in Jim Goldie and Michael Appleby.
Doncaster St Leger meeting - Handicaps (last five years)
Trainer | W-R | Win % | £1 | Places | Place % | A/E |
Jim Goldie | 4-14 | 29% | +27 | 2 | 43% | 3.05 |
Charlie Appleby | 4-9 | 44% | +14 | 1 | 56% | 1.51 |
Ed & Simon Crisford | 3-9 | 33% | +14 | 0 | 33% | 2.48 |
Michael Appleby | 3-10 | 30% | +17 | 2 | 50% | 3.19 |
Middle-distances
As for the middle-distances, then Team Gosden racked up some serious profits courtesy of a big 2025 double in which Devil's Advocate (1m2f) and Cape Flora (1m4f) triumphed at 20/1 and 11/2.
Doncaster St Leger meeting - Middle-distances (last five years)
Trainer | W-R | Win % | £1 | Places | Place % | A/E |
John & Thady Gosden | 3-9 | 33% | +23 | 1 | 44% | 1.91 |
Owen Burrows is the final name nominated. Look for his handicappers, as they struck with 3 wins from 10 runs & 2 placed for a 50% place strike-rate.